This document outlines the major government initiatives for agrarian reform in the Philippines from the post-World War 2 era to the present. It details key programs and policies enacted under different administrations aimed at promoting social justice through land redistribution, improving conditions for farmers and tenant farmers, and facilitating land ownership reform. Major reforms included the 1963 Agricultural Land Reform Code under Diosdado Macapagal and Presidential Decree 27 under Ferdinand Marcos, while recent administrations have continued efforts to sustain gains and address gaps in implementing comprehensive agrarian reform.

1. 1946-1948
Land Redistribution - to
help landless farmers
gain access to
agricultural lands.
Land Bank of the
Philippines (1947) – it’s
purpose was to provide
financial support to
farmers and promote
agricultural
development.
Agrarian Code - aimed
to comprehensively
address agrarian issues
in the country.
Manuel Roxas
1948-1953
Rural Progress
Administration (1950)-
to promote rural
development and uplift
the living conditions of
farmers.
Agricultural Credit and
Cooperative Financing
Administration (1952)-
to provide credit and
financial support to
farmers and rural
cooperatives.
Land Settlement and
Development
Corporation (1951)- to
facilitate land
distribution and
resettlement programs.
Elpidio Quirino
1953-1957
President Magsaysay
realized the importance of
pursuing a more
honest-to-goodness land reform
program. He convinced the elite
controlled congress to
pass several legislation
to improve the land
reform situation.
Ramon Magsaysay
1935-1944
Manuel L. Quezon
timeline of the government initiatives for agrarian reform starting from the post-War to the
present time
Agricultural Tenancy Act
(1933) - aimed to protect
the rights of tenant
farmers.
Rice Share Tenancy Act
(1933) - it sought to
regulate share tenancy
agreements in the rice
industry.
National Land Settlement
Administration (1936)-
aimed to provide landless
farmers with opportunities
for land ownership
through distribution of
public lands.
Carlos P. Garcia
Carlos P. Garcia did not have
significant initiatives specifically
focused on agrarian reforms during his
presidency. His administration mainly
focused on economic policies, foreign
relations, and cultural development,
rather than agrarian reform programs.
1957-1961
Athea S. Lecaros BSI/T 1-B
Joaquin San Juan Readings in Philippine history

2. 1961-1965
Agricultural Land Reform
Code (1963)- aimed at
promoting social justice and
equitable distribution of
agricultural lands.
- It emphasized owner-
cultivatorship and farmer
independence, equity,
productivity improvement and
the public distribution of land.
Diosdado Macapagal
1965-1986
Presidential Decree 27
(1972)- This decree focused
on the implementation of the
Rice and Corn Production
Programs, which aimed to
distribute public and private
agricultural lands to tenant-
farmers, giving them
ownership and improving
their economic condition.
Ferdinand E. Marcos
1986-1992
Various sectors recognized
agrarian reform as a
worthwhile social
investment. In terms of the
tenant-tiller status, this
improved particularly those
within landowners’ retained
areas or on landholdings
subject for coverage.
Corazon C. Aquino
1998-2001
One of the first things this
administration did was to
rework performance targets –
by focusing on the number of
hectares of land distributed
coupled with an accounting of
farmer beneficiaries and the
specific croplands and farm
systems covered.
Joseph Estrada
2001-2010
- The GMA administration
has adopted the BAYAN-
ANIHAN concept as the
implementing framework for
CARP.
- Bayan means people,
Anihan means harvest and
Bayanihan means working
together.
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
2010-2016
Under the governance of
President Aquino, the DAR
which is the lead agency for
CARP implementation is bent on
sustaining the gains of agrarian
reform through its three major
components– Land Tenure
Improvement (LTI), Program
Beneficiaries Development
(PBD) and Agrarian Justice
Delivery (AJD).
Benigno C. Aquino
1992-1998
The Ramos administration is
recognized for bringing back
support of key stakeholders of
CARP by bridging certain
policy gaps on land
acquisition and distribution,
land valuation, and case
resolution.
Fidel V. Ramos
2016-2022
Rodrigo Duterte
Duterte signed the Enhanced
Comprehensive Agrarian
Reform Program Extension with
Reforms (ECARPER) law in
2019, which extended the
implementation of the
Comprehensive Agrarian
Reform Program (CARP) until
2024 and provided additional
funding and support services for
agrarian reform beneficiaries.